As you’ve no doubt heard, Indiana GOP Senate candidate Richard Mourdock is generating a little attention with this claim about God and rape:
“I’ve struggled with it myself for a long time, but I came to realize that life is that gift from God,” Mourdock said. “And even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen.”
Mourdock is trying to clean this up at a presser this morning. Dems, obviously, are piling on the comment, demanding that Romney rescind his support for Mourdock and insist that Mourdock take down an ad that features Romney.
But Romney will not be pulling his support for Mourdock, though he disagrees with his comments and his position. Romney spokesperson Andrea Saul emails:
Gov. Romney disagrees with Richard Mourdock, and Mr. Mourdock’s comments do not reflect Gov. Romney’s views. We disagree on the policy regarding exceptions for rape and incest but still support him.
Emphasis mine. I’m also told the Romney campaign will not ask the ad to be pulled.
This is only going to snowball from here on out. Dems and women’s groups are launching an all out attack on Mourdock’s comments, arguing that they illustrate a deeper problem within the GOP. This comes even as the battle for the female vote is intensifying, with Obama and Dems hammering Romney daily for his positions on abortion, contraception, women’s health, and pay equity, in an effort to paint the candidate and his party as hidebound, reactionary, and fundamentally untrustworthy on the issues that matter to women.
More soon.
